When you plan your new greenhouse, most hobby gardeners think of the traditional material glass. However, building a greenhouse yourself out of Plexiglas would be an alternative worth considering. The plastic impresses with its excellent heat values and a number of other advantages.
Why should you build a greenhouse out of Plexiglas yourself?
Building a greenhouse yourself from Plexiglas offers advantages such as high light and UV transmission values, excellent aging resistance, resistance to breakage in the event of hail or stone chips and good thermal insulation values with a positive energy balance. Specially coated panels prevent dripping water and improve the climate for plants.
First of all: The frequently encountered prejudices that glass is just glass and is far superior to a “plastic house”, not least because of its aesthetics, are a bit premature. The best example is commercial gardening, where Plexiglas has been the undisputed favorite among roofing materials for decades, especially when growing vegetables. We would like to provide our readers with some interesting facts to explain why this is the case.
Plants love plexiglass greenhouses
The quality of light, which can now be analyzed very reliably using laboratory testing equipment, is almost completely identical to that of natural light and Plexiglas is the only material withcomplete UV permeability This alone results in the plants better developing their characteristic aromas and colors, ensures optimal flower formation and reduces the need for fertilizer in the form of nitrates, which is particularly advantageous for growing vegetables. And then there is the UG value:
Thermal transmittance value – the measure of all things when building a greenhouse
Do you remember our overview of the technical parameters of certain materials that are relevant in greenhouse construction? Otherwise, compare the UG value (of 2.5) if you build a greenhouse out of Plexiglas yourself with our published material overview. Due to its high quality and proven resistance to aging, plastic glass is also very popular in the automotive and aircraft industries. Manufacturers of prefabricated greenhouses therefore give their products a guarantee of up to 30 years, for example against yellowing.
Greenhouse with plexiglass, stable and thermally insulating
If you build a greenhouse out of Plexiglas yourself, you don't have to worry too much about hail resistance. Although hailstones the size of a table tennis ball will certainly cause local damage, a glass house and its cultivated crops would be completely destroyed in such cases. The balance in terms of energy costsfor heating Plexiglas greenhouses looks similarly positive. Calculations have shown that the energy balance of 16 mm thick double-wall panels is a whopping 40 percent cheaper than a single-glazed greenhouse. Not to mention the benefits for the environment in terms of the desired sustainability.
So on the plus side of a plexiglass roofing for greenhouses are:
- high light and UV transmission values;
- excellent aging resistance;
- break-resistant in the event of hail or stone chips;
- good thermal insulation values with a positive energy balance;
Tip
If you are building your greenhouse yourself from Plexiglas, it is best to choose panels with a special coating when purchasing the panels, which counteract the formation of dripping water in the interior and significantly improve the climatic conditions for the plants.
